That's a solid theory, but my truck's grounding strap is currently held on with a rusty hose clamp and pure hope, so I'm pretty sure the static is just my radio's way of begging for mercy.

Kinda reminds me of the time we spent three days mapping a supposed cistern in New Mexico, turned out it was just a really deep animal burrow with a bunch of old tin cans stacked in it. The crew lead at the time kept saying we'd find the feature on the next level, and we kept going deeper because nobody wanted to be the one to call it. But that's the thing about survey work, you're always balancing the clock against what's under your feet, and that hearth being two feet east is just the kind of thing that keeps you humble. Missing a feature doesn't mean the lead was bad, it means the ground's good at hiding stuff, especially when you've got limited days and the sun's baking your brain.